1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hydraulically operated aircraft actuator for driving a control surface of an aircraft.
2. Description of Related Art
An aircraft is provided with control surfaces that are formed as moving surfaces (flight control surfaces) and are configured as an aileron, an elevator, a rudder, and the like. Also, a hydraulically operated actuator (aircraft actuator) is attached to a control surface, and the control surface is driven by the aircraft actuator. As such hydraulically operated aircraft actuators capable of driving a control surface, those disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3652642, U.S. Pat. No. 6,685,138, and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0185476 are known.
Japanese Patent No. 3652642 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,685,138 disclose, as aircraft actuators, tandem actuators that are configured as a single cylinder mechanism including a piston rod provided with two pistons aligned in series. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0185476 discloses an aircraft actuator having a structure in which two cylinder mechanisms each including a piston rod provided with a single piston are provided and the piston rods of the cylinder mechanisms are coupled at their ends. With the use of aircraft actuators as disclosed in Japanese Patent 3652642, U.S. Pat. No. 6,685,138, and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0185476, it is possible to obtain an increased output due to an increased pressure receiving area.